


The Brave and Most Reckless House of Sirius

by Maxiln



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen, i made myself sad with the ending, james is such a charming eleven year old that he gives another eleven year old a mid-life crisis, sirius doesn't want to be a slytherin, this was about sirius and regulus when i started it but im not sure what it is now
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-04
Updated: 2016-07-04
Packaged: 2018-07-20 00:06:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,814
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7383022
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maxiln/pseuds/Maxiln
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sirius heads off to Hogwarts for the first time, fully expecting to be a part of Slytherin house by day's end, whether he wants to or not.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Brave and Most Reckless House of Sirius

**Author's Note:**

> Oh boy it's been a while since I've written something. I just wanted to say that it's been a while since I've read Harry Potter so I apologize in advance if my memory is rusty.

“Bye, mom!” Sirius shouted, leaning out the window of the train. “Bye, Reg!” Sirius waved at his mother and younger brother as the train sped down the tracks. His mother did not wave. Regulus lifted one hand in a brief wave, after checking that their mother was not watching.

Finally, Sirius could no longer see them. He pulled his arm back inside the train, where he sat in an empty compartment with his luggage parked above his head.

Alone. No mother, no father, no brother or worrisome relatives. Sirius’s heart began to pound at this thought, though whether it was from relief or fear he didn’t know. Being alone was a foreign feeling to Sirius. Back home, there was always someone breathing up his neck, telling him to sit straighter or speak clearer. Sirius was guessing it would be the same at Hogwarts. If not the same in all of Hogwarts, it would certainly be the same in Slytherin house, where he was sure to end up.

Slytherin. The Blacks were a family of Slytherins, and Sirius knew that he was expected to join the house of the cunning just the same as the rest of his family. He had been told what the process would be. Walk up, take his seat, put on the hat. The hat would immediately call out for Slytherin, as it had done for generations of Blacks before him, and Sirius would walk with pride towards the table of his new house.

Sirius shifted uncomfortably in his seat. His compartment was still empty, but he could hear laughing and shouting from the compartments around him. Being alone may be something foreign for Sirius, but being lonely was all too familiar.

“Hey, over here! There’s room here!” All of sudden, the door to Sirius’s compartment flew open, and before he could react a boy slid into the seat across from him, followed by another shorter, pudgier boy. Sirius blinked in a moment of shock. The first boy had a mess of dark hair, which looked as if it had been slicked down earlier in the day but had recently been mussed up. He wore square glasses crooked on his face. When he grinned at Sirius, Sirius noticed he was missing one of his canine teeth. The boy sitting next to him was short and stocky with an upturned nose and dirty blond hair, messy, but not as messy as the first boy’s. He looked both terrified and excited. Both of their robes were already mussed, not ten minutes into the train ride.

Sirius suddenly felt very awkward in his smooth, ironed robes and well-combed hair.

“Hello,” grinned the first boy, holding out his hand for Sirius to shake. “Potter! James Potter! Nice to meet you! And that’s Peter! We’re both first years. Are you a first year, too? You look about our age! What’s your name?”

It took Sirius a full twenty second to process the boy’s rapid questioning. Then he found himself gripping James’s extended hand, and a grin began to form across his face.

“I’m Sirius,” he said. “And yeah, I’m a first year.”

James’s eyes lit up as he gave Sirius’s hand a firm shake. He opened his mouth to begin talking again, but was interrupted by the opening of the compartment door.

“Can I sit here?” the face that peered in was slender and pretty, with warm brown eyes and light brown hair falling over the left eye. The three boys in the compartment nodded, and the fourth boy slid in next to Sirius.

“I’m Remus,” he said, nervously picking at a tear on the cover of the book he held.

***

The end of the train ride was coming up, and Sirius already had three friends. James was brave and reckless, already scheming up plans that would certainly get them all into trouble. Remus was bookish and quiet, curled snugly in his seat with his book. He occasionally glanced up and added to the conversation, whether it was to tell James not to be stupid, there was no way they could sneak into the headmaster’s office, or to add a devilish idea of his own. Peter interjected occasionally with his own thoughts, but for the most part sat looking at James in awe. It was a strange feeling for Sirius, talking about sneaking into the kitchens or going into the forbidden forest. Rules were meant to followed in the Black home. These boys didn’t seem to be all too familiar with following the rules.

Sirius loved them already. But he knew, deep down, that these friendships could be over as soon as soon as the train ride ended.

“Hey, guys,” Sirius said, interrupting James, who was telling Peter about the rumored squid at the bottom of the lake. “What house do you think you’ll be in?”

Remus and Peter simply shrugged, indicating a sense of uncertainty.

But James began to grin again, his eyes lighting up.

“Gryffindor!” He proclaimed, standing up on his seat. “That’s the only house for a Potter! Gryffindors are brave and cool and… and…” James couldn’t seem to think of what else Gryffindors were so instead he waved his hands in excitement as he sat back down. “Howabout you?”

Sirius felt a lump forming in his throat. Just like he was afraid, he was destined by blood to end up in a different house from this boy he thought he had a new friend in.

“I… uh, I don’t really know,” Sirius said, a little too quickly. “I guess we’ll see!”

He didn’t say _‘Oh, well, my entire family has been in Slytherin so I’m just destined to end up there! Also, my mom loves to talk about how reckless and improper Gryffindors are all the time, you’d think it’s her hobby. Guess we’ll never talk again!’_

Yeah, he decided not to say that, and instead feigned interest in something outside the window.

James seemed to notice that Sirius was hiding something, but he said nothing as the train pulled into the station.

***

Upon leaving the train, all the first years were loaded onto boats that took them up to the castle. Sirius purposely let himself be separated from James and the others. _There’s no reason to try and be friends with them if I’m stuck in Slytherin,_ Sirius thought, and instead loaded himself onto a boat with two girls whispering back and forth to each other.

When they got up to the castle, a middle aged woman met them and introduced herself as Minerva McGonagall. She explained the process of sorting, how their names would be called in alphabetical order and they would come sit on the stool and have the hat placed on their head to sort them.

The sorting hat sang its song, as Sirius had been told it did every year. Sirius was too fidgety to pay attention. The song fades out, and McGonagall’s voice rang throughout the hall.

"Black, Sirius!" Sirius made his way over to the hat on shaky legs. McGonagall greeted with him with a warm smile and a reassuring nod. She seemed to understand just how nervous Sirius was.

McGonagall lifted the hat and gestured for Sirius to sit on the stool. She plopped the hat on his head, and it promptly fell over his eyes until all he could see was the worn brown on the hat's inner lining.

"Hmmm... is this a Black family member we have here?" Sirius started at the sound of the voice. He knew that the hat sometimes spoke to its wearer, but it still caught him off guard.

"Yeah... I'm a Black," Sirius said to the hat. He couldn’t tell if he was saying it aloud or simply projecting his thoughts to the hat. "So why don't you just go ahead and put me in Slytherin like the rest of them?"

Sirius didn't mean to sound bitter about it. He knew that Slytherin was the best house, where those who were pure of blood found greatness. But he couldn't help remembering James. All cocky confidence, big smile and bigger heart. James had proclaimed with pride that his entire family was made up of Gryffindors, and that he was bound to be one too. He had gone on and on about loyalty and chivalry and all the wonderful things making up Gryffindor house.

As hard as he tried, Sirius didn't feel that strong, happy connection with his family's house. Ambition and cunning were fine and all, but they just weren't Sirius. Sirius would rather face a problem head on than find the sneaky way around it. Sirius wanted to be brave, and reckless, and spend his time at Hogwarts running around and getting into trouble. Sirius wanted to be like James. Most of all, Sirius wanted friendship. It only took one simple train ride for Sirius to realize what he’s been missing his whole life. Those three boys cared about him and liked him for who he was, they didn’t just tolerate him for who his family was.

Sirius didn't want to be a Slytherin.

All of these thought crossed Sirius's head in a matter of seconds. He realized that the hat had been quietly listening to his thoughts.

"Blood does not determine house," The sorting hat spoke, gentler than Sirius expected a hat to speak – although he usually wouldn’t expect a hat to speak at all. "Heart does."

Before Sirius had a chance to reply, the hat shouted out, "GRYFFINDOR!" The room broke into cheers as the hat was lifted off his head. Sirius felt a smile creeping up on his face despite the sinking feeling of betrayal in his stomach. He heard a loud shout of glee from the waiting first years, and turned to see a grinning James giving him two thumbs up. He beamed back, truly happy for the first time that day. Sirius ignored the whispers from the Slytherin table as he made his way to his fellow Gryffindors.

His house.

His friends.

His family.

***

Two years later, Sirius sat at the Gryffindor table, holding his breath. 'Black, Regulus' had just been called up to the hat.

It had been two years since Sirius had been sorted into Gryffindor, two years since he had broken the chain of Slytherins in the Black family. Two years since he had a received a howler at the breakfast table telling him what a disappointment he was.

Maybe, just maybe, thought Sirius, he and Regulus would be in this together. He could see it now; his baby brother gets sorted into Gryffindor. They’re the shame of the Black family, but they’re the shame of the Black family together. Everything is easier if it’s done with someone you love. Maybe, just maybe, his little brother would break out of the mold and join him in Gryffindor.

Maybe.

"SLYTHERIN!" the hat shouted without hesitation upon touching Regulus’s head.

Maybe.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed! I'm also on tumblr - paolomontes.tumblr.com


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